In a curious move, Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD) has quietly announced [product page] 2 GB DDR3 DRAM (dynamic random access memory) sticks to be branded under the "Radeon" brand name. As many of you know, Radeon has traditionally been used as the brand name for AMD's graphics cards lineup, which it acquired from ATI.

There's no word yet on whether the company might eventually deploy notebook form-factor sticks. Pricing and global availability have also not yet been officially announced.

However, NCIX.com, a Canadian e-tailer, has begun selling the 2GB Entertainment sticks for $9.99 CAD (~$10.05 USD) and Dosupara House Parts in Akihabara, Japan, is selling them for ¥1,570 (~$20.32 USD).

The pricing on 2 GB 1333 MHz parts is currently floating around $15-$25, so the Canadian price is a real steal, while the Japanese price is more typical.

The new memory's packaging is plain, with a simple "RADEON MEMORY" emblem affixed to the stick. Absent are the colorful heatsinks, which some memory manufacturers have indulged in. Past reviews have indicated that such heatsinks are almost exclusively for aesthetics, as they have little effect on actual DRAM performance.

The enterprise model is printed on a green PCB, while it appears that the ULTRAPRO model will be printed on a blue PCB.